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Episode 411: The Too Many Excellent Emails Edition
Date March 21, 2014 Summary Ben and Sam answer listener emails about supercomputers, heartbeat monitors, players using stats, and more. Topics * Heart rate monitors * Supercomputer use * Pitchers hitting eighth * OPS and ISO on batted balls * Player use and understanding of sabermetrics * Spring training ballpark dimensions * Choosing between stats and scouts * Minimum talent to beat major leaguers Intro War Games sound clip Email Questions * Mark (Alexandria, VA): "With the Pirates' Russell Martin wearing a heart monitor, what questions does Sam want to ask the Pirates?" * Darren (Auburn, WA): "Can you discuss the theory of hitting the pitcher eighth? I just read that the Mets were actually thinking about this to get 9-1-2 to allow the third hitter to act like a cleanup hitter. This seems like pseudo-sabermetrics to me and not real but apparently Tony La Russa used to do it all the time. Any evidence that this would work?" * Dan (New Jersey) : "In Ben's synopsis of the SABR Analytics Conference it was estimated by Brandon McCarthy that 5-10% of current players know what FIP is. How important is it for players to be knowledgeable about the game? Do players just need to do what they are told by the managers and coaches or would there be a benefit to developing players who are aware of advanced statistics and research?" * Chris: "Thermoclines and sewer backups aside, wouldn't there be some benefit to teams to ape their home stadiums at their spring training homes? Would Bryce Harper run into as many walls at the same speeds if Space Coast Stadium had the same dimensions as Nationals Park and he ran back to the same depth a few more times every spring?" * Jake: "You have unlimited money to create either the best scouting team in the league (by say 10%) or the best analytics team in the league by the same amount, but not both. In fact, you'd have to commit exclusively to either stats or scouting. So which do you take, all stats and no scouting or all scouting and no analytics?" * Dustin: "What is the highest level of baseball that would go 0-162 against a major league team?" Play Index * Sam wanted to find out which player, since 1997, had the highest isolated power on ground balls (minimum 75). This was originally inspired by Yasiel Puig's 2013 season when he had a very high BABIP on ground balls. * In 1997 Jeremy Burnitz had an ISO of .122 on ground balls, hitting 13 doubles and 3 triples on ground balls during the season. Notes * Heart rate monitors and wearable technology were also discussed in Episode 275. * Sam wants to know whether Russell Martin's heart rate goes up before pitches where he ultimately swings, which would suggest that there is an unconscious swing/no-swing decision even before the pitch is thrown. He acknowledges that this is of no strategic value, but he's just curious. * The Economist reports one team spent $500,000 on a supercomputer. Sam thinks it was the Cubs. Ben jokingly guesses that the Phillies have gone all-in on analytics and purchased it without knowing what they intend to do with it. * Ben relates a similar situation when his grandmother got a computer. Even though she was going to use it just for email and web browsing, she wanted a top-of-the line system, just because she wanted to have the best. * Since 1997 there have been 6 ground ball home runs * In 2007 Matt Kemp had a .916 OPS on ground balls. In 2013 Mike Trout had a .755 OPS on ground balls, which led the league. * In 2000 Mickey Morandini hit 106 fly balls without having one land (all caught, no home runs). * Ben and Sam think that any full season league would be able to win games against MLB teams. Links * Effectively Wild Episode 411: The Too Many Excellent Emails Edition * Game on by The Economist * Answers from a Sabermetrician, Part 1 by Tom Tango * The Simulated Seasons Where the Astros Make the Playoffs by Sam Miller Category:Email Episodes Category:Episodes